The Politicker's Azi riffs on Apple's new must-have, the iPhone, noting that it reserves its most appealing and fun features for when the beautiful thing is in a WiFi network.

Thing is, WiFi is still not anywhere near the coverage of cell phone networks. So yes, there are political ramifications from this product launch. If this new gadget is anywhere near as successful as the iPod, it will have the unintended side effect of showcasing that broadband access is of right a public utility, a necessity akin to roads and running water.

There is a hint in this launch of a new issue for Democrats. Governor Spitzer made universal statewide broadband access a campaign issue, giving the keynote address at the Personal Democracy Forum, blogged here:

I am proposing that New York launch a comprehensive statewide broadband initiative to ensure universal access to affordable, high-speed broadband service for every New Yorker. We must make New York State the most connected and technologically advanced place to live and do business in the world. The problem isn't a lack of resources, it's a lack of imagination and a lack of leadership.

In the 21st Century, Internet access is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity. The economic, education, health, security, government efficiency and social benefits from universal broadband access are limitless.

Meanwhile, republicans are joined at the hip to the existing providers at Big Telco (per OpenSecrets.org, 64% of telecom campaign contributions went to republicans in 2006), which means they're unlikely to take the lead on this issue.

There's an opportunity here, perhaps on the scale of rural electrification in the Roosevelt era. The potential ramifications, economically, culturally, even politically, are breathtaking.